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1501 College Avenue

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has determined that the cleanup requirements to address contamination related to 1501 College Avenue Site ("site") located at 1501 College Avenue, Niagara Falls, Niagara County under New York State's Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) have been met. Please see Site Location for a map of the site.

The cleanup activities were performed by SANTAROSA HOLDINGS, INC. with oversight provided by DEC. DEC has issued a Certificate of Completion regarding the site. A copy of the Notice of the Certificate of Completion (COC) is available at the locations identified below under Where to Find Information.

Site Timeline

1910 - 1986
Union Carbide operated site as a manufacturing facility1986
Site operated by Niagara Vest Corporation2008January:RI/AAR work plan approvedApril:IRM work plan submittedJune:IRM work plan approved2009 - 2011May:IRM/RI field work2012September:RI/IRM/AA Report submittedNovember 8: No Further Action Decision Document released

Institutional and Engineering Controls

Institutional controls and engineering controls generally are designed to reduce or eliminate exposure to contaminants of concern. An institutional control is a non-physical restriction on use of the site, such as a deed restriction, when contamination left over after the cleanup action makes the site suitable for some, but not all uses. An engineering control is a physical barrier or method to manage contamination such as a cap or vapor barrier.

The following institutional controls have been put in place on the site:

Environmental Easement

The following engineering controls have been put in place on the site:

Cover System

Next Steps

1501 College Ave Site before remediation

DEC issued the COC to the applicant (or applicants, if appropriate) based on review and approval of a Final Engineering Report (FER). The FER includes:

A description of the cleanup activities completed;

Certification that cleanup requirements have been or will be achieved for the site;

A description of any institutional/engineering controls to be used; and

A certification that a site management plan for any engineering controls used at the site has been approved by DEC.

With its receipt of a COC, the applicant is eligible to redevelop the site. In addition, the applicant:

Has no liability to the State for contamination at or coming from the site, subject to certain conditions; and

Is eligible for tax credits to offset the costs of performing cleanup activities and for redevelopment of the site.

A COC may be modified or revoked if, for example, there is a failure to comply with the terms of the order or agreement with DEC.

Background

LocationThis 12.25 acre BCP site is located in the north end of the City of Niagara Falls. It is situated in a generally industrialized area with nearby multi-family housing. The BCP site is bounded by College Avenue to the north, with a private access road along the western property boundary, and vacant industrial-use properties to the east and south. Industrial and commercial buildings are present to the north, south, and west of the site, with residential properties located approximately 500 feet to the southwest.

Site Features
This site consists of the majority of the former Union Carbide facility located at 1501 College Avenue, Niagara Falls, Niagara County. It once consisted of several large abandoned manufacturing buildings and had been the site of illegal vehicle stripping and dumping. The abandoned manufacturing buildings have been removed and a cover system constructed over the site through the performance of an interim remedial measure under a brownfield cleanup agreement.

1501 College Ave Site before remediation

History
Union Carbide operated the site as a manufacturing facility from 1910-1986. Products that were manufactured included specialty machined graphite, carbon liners, cathode blocks, and furnace electrodes. After 1986, the site was operated by Niagara Vest Corporation. This site is also adjacent to the Hazorb site - which had USEPA removal action performed in 2003 to dispose of asbestos building materials (PCB concentrations up to 56,000 ppm).

The project site is located within a Federal Renewal Community Zone, a New York State Empire Zone, a New York State Environmental Zone, and is in a highly distressed area as defined under New York State General Municipal Law. The intended future use of this site is for industrial purposes.

A (RI/AAR) work plan was submitted with the BCP application. The site is being managed as a single operable unit. Known and suspected contaminants are Petroleum, SVOCs, Metals, and PCBs which are impacting soils. The RI/AAR work plan was approved on January 4, 2008.

An IRM Work Plan was submitted in April 2008, and was approved in June 2008. The applicant delayed the start of the IRM and RI/AAR activities due to funding and business plan issues. In May 2009, some preliminary IRM field work began with selected demolition of some site buildings.

The RI field work began in September 2010, and was substantially complete by October 2010. The most significant IRM field work began in December 2010.

The RI/IRM/AA Report was submitted on September 17, 2012. A final site IRM inspection was performed on October 12, 2012 where the IRM work was determined to be substantially complete. The SMP and FER are expected to be submitted by November 1, 2012.

A No Further Action DD describing the work done on the site was prepared and a 45 day public comment period was begun on October 22, 2012.

Additional Details

Brownfield Cleanup Program

New York's Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) encourages the voluntary cleanup of contaminated properties known as "brownfields" so that they can be reused and redeveloped. These uses may include recreation, housing, business or other uses. A brownfield is any real property that is difficult to reuse or redevelop because of the presence or potential presence of contamination. For more information about the BCP, visit DEC's website.

Where to Find Information

Public interest in this project is valued and appreciated. Project documents are available at the following locations to help the public stay informed:

For More Information

Have site information such as this fact sheet sent right to your email inbox. DEC invites you to sign up with one or more contaminated sites county email listservs available. It's quick, it's free, and it will help keep you better informed.

As a listserv member, you will periodically receive site-related information/announcements for all contaminated sites in the county(ies) you select. You may continue also to receive paper copies of site information for a time after you sign up with a county listserv, until the transition to electronic distribution is complete.